Dirty Pictures
by emeraldonix
Summary: The truth of the matter is, she's been very attracted to Inojin for quite some time now, and probably would have agreed to it if he had just asked, or told her, or something like that. But he didn't and now she feels the strangest mix of violation and flattery


Boruto and Mitsuki head off for Ichiraku's hand in hand, but Sarada keeps trudging forward, her bag suddenly very heavy on her back. This was her team's first A-rank mission, and as her team's leader she was the bearer of most of the responsibility and stress. Boruto and Mitsuki are always so carefree anyways that whatever stress they may have felt was gone before they even reached fire country's borders. Meanwhile, Sarada can't stop thinking about all of the hitches and bumps they encountered, even though the mission was a success. Having two perfectionist parents has really rubbed off on her.

"Are you sure you don't want to come along Sara-chan?" Boruto is looking over his shoulder with confusion on his face. "You love ramen!"

Sarada gives her best friend a reassuring, but tired smile. "Yeah, I'm sure. I'm going to go turn in our mission report and get some sleep. Have fun you two!" She laughs when Mitsuki winks at her and slings an arm around Boruto's neck to pull him along. The Hokage's son turns bright red at the public display of affection and Sarada laughs as he awkwardly shifts under Mitsuki's arm as they continue to walk toward the ramen stand. They just announced their relationship to their families and friends a month and a half ago and Boruto still isn't used to not having to keep it a secret. Mitsuki on the other hand takes full advantage of finally being out and doesn't go easy on the PDA.

The walk to her parent's house isn't as far as the walk to her new apartment, so Sarada heads there for a shower and a homecooked meal. She hasn't seen her papa for months either, because he returned from a month long mission just after she left for her own. It's been years since she went that long without seeing him.

After her twelfth birthday when he finally came home for good, he became her genin team's sensei and the only time he left the village was to take her, Boruto, and Mitsuki on missions. Even when all three members of Team Seven became chunin, he didn't leave the village for more than a few days at a time, because at that point Sora had just been born and Sasuke didn't want to leave Sakura alone with a baby for a second time. Only when Sarada turned sixteen and passed the Jounin exam and Sora turned four did Sasuke begin to take lengthier missions again. This month long mission has been the longest yet, and Sasuke has taken two months off to watch Sora so Sakura can get some hours in at the hospital training new medical ninja.

Sarada finds her father and Sora out in the front yard weeding her mother's garden when she arrives at the pretty white house. When the five year old spots his older sister, he takes off running and flings himself in her waiting arms. She spins him around as he squeals in joy before setting him down to go and hug her father. Sora's green eyes are lit up with pure joy and Sarada's heart melts in her chest as he babbles about his adventures with their papa and his friend Negi Uzumaki, the Hokage's youngest son.

Sarada ruffles Sora's pink hair affectionately when he finishes his final tale and pokes his forehead to express her love for her baby brother. Sora kisses his sister's cheek in response and drags her inside. "I have something to show you! Come on! Papa, you can't come! It's a secret!" Sasuke halts where he is with a bemused look on his face and Sarada laughs at his expression as she allows herself to be dragged up the stairs and to Sora's room. The room has been repainted from a pale green to a deep blue, and a framed picture of Sora and his preschool class has been hung on the wall. All of these changes Sarada notes as an afterthought, because she can't take her eyes off of the hawk perched on top of the closet door. It's beady eyes stare back at her and she gulps nervously. "Sora, why is there a bird in here?"

The five year old grins up at her. "I found one of papa's scrolls and learned how to summon them! Isn't she cool?" The boy holds out his arm and the hawk swoops down to land on it gracefully.

"Greetings, Miss Sarada." The hawk greets. The seventeen year old gapes at the summoned bird. "My name is Sumukha. I am the daughter of Garuda, the King of Hawks, and am now bound by contract to serve your brother." The bird informs her matter of factly. Sarada, still stunned, manages to bow politely as she pieces everything together.

"How do you know my name?" She finally manages to get out.

"Well, Sora has told me about you, but I have heard of you before from my father. He was present when your mother was in labor and flew her to Karin-san for your birth." Sumukha explains.

"Sora, does papa or mam know you can summon Sumukha-san?" The little boy looks away an Sarada knows he is keeping the summoning contract a secret. "Why don't we go show her to papa right now, then? He won't be mad, just surprised." she kneels down and pokes him in the belly. "After all, it isn't every day a five year old can perform a summoning jutsu." The scared look leaves Sora's face and his beautiful green eyes light up with excitement. "Let's go Sumukha! Papa is outside!"

Sarada is about to follow her brother when she notices something sticking out from under Sora's bed. She figures it must be the summoning scroll so she picks it up, only to drop it in surprise. It's a risque drawing of herself, and she knows exactly who drew it. There's no signature, but she has seen so many of his drawings that she she would know his style anywhere. "Inojin." She mutters under her breath before taking several deep breaths to keep from putting her fist through a wall. Sora must have found it somewhere in Inojin's room while he was being babysat by Aunt Ino. Sarada isn't sure if she's more mad that he drew such a degrading picture of her without her permission or that he was so careless with it that her little brother was able to swipe it from his room without him noticing. Sarada makes a mental note to have a talk with Sora about not taking things that aren't his.

Sasuke calls up the stairs that he's about to start dinner, so Sarada decides to go take a bath and put on the extra clothes she keeps in her old room. She tells herself her face is red from the heat of the water, and that it has nothing to do with the thought of Inojin thinking of her in such a manner. When her heart starts to race, she convinces herself it's from the heat as well and quickly drains the tub and takes a cold shower. By the time she finishes washing her long hair and getting the dirt and grime off her skin, she feels like her blood may be freezing in her veins and all thoughts of Inojin and his naughty drawings are momentarily forgot about as she dries off and pulls on a baggy pale coral sweater and leggings. She towel dries her hair and combs the knots out before putting her glasses back on and heading downstairs for dinner.

Half way down the stairs she recognizes her mother's voice followed by her Aunt Ino's distinctive laugh. Sarada freezes on the stairs and is about to turn around and hightail it back up the stairs to escape out a window when Sora appears at the base of the stairs with Sumukha perched on his shoulder. "Nee-chan! Mama says to hurry up! The Yamanakas are here for dinner!" He turns around and runs away, but the damage has already been done. Everyone knows she's there so she can't slip out. With a deep breath and years of practice, Sarada is able to school the look on her face into one of indifference as she descends the stairs and brushes past Inojin, who is waiting to greet her. She manages to greet her Aunt Ino and Uncle Sai and kiss her mother on the cheek before she slips away into the kitchen and out of Inojin's sight. She has a very vivid image in her mind of him sitting on his bed drawing those horribly erotic pictures of her. Only a task that requires concentration can distract her from it. She takes the potatoes from the counter beside her father and begins to peel and slice them up for the stew he is preparing.

She can feel her father's gaze on her as she works, but he says nothing. She can always depend on him for that. He won't pry into her business like her mother does. She loves her mother dearly, but sometimes she just likes to keep certain things to herself. He's probably only staring at her because he's afraid she'll slice off her finger at the speed she's slicing the vegetables. She finishes the potatoes, carrots, and celery in the time it takes him to slice the tomatoes. When she finishes the vegetables and there's nothing left to do for the stew, she prepares a salad with what ingredients she can find in the fridge, mixes up a batch of pudding, and slices up a loaf of bread to go with the stew. She takes over washing the dishes for her father when the food is done and sets the table after that. When she is done and looking around the kitchen for anything else to do, she notices her father is still staring at her with his arms crossed and a slight frown on his face. "Do you feel better, now?" he asks.

His question only serves to remind Sarada of what she is trying so hard to ignore and she groans in frustration and covers her blushing cheeks with her hands. Just then Sakura walks in to refill drinks and sees the state her daughter is in. "Sweetie, you don't look so good. Are you sick?" She goes to feel her daughter's forehead and uses her medical chakra to scan her system for a virus. Her brow furrows. "I don't detect any illnesses."

Sarada waves her mother's worry off. "It's nothing, mom. I'm just a little warm, is all."

Sakura nods in agreement. "It is a bit stuffy in here. Why don't you and Inojin take Sora outside for a short walk. Your brother wants to see how fast Sumukha can fly but I won't let him do it in the house."

Sarada panics and can think of absolutely no reason why she could turn down the suggestion. With her thoughts jumbled, she has no time to react before her mother calls the two boys into the kitchen. They're out the door and walking down the street toward a nearby park within minutes, and Sora runs up ahead of the two seventeen year olds, leaving Sarada to drown in her embarrassment alone with the cause of it.

"So how was your mission? I saw Mitsuki and Boruto at Ichiraku's together on my way over here and wondered why you weren't with them. Did something happen?" Inojin's tone is casual and the question is innocent enough, but Sarada's fragile stoic mask is cracked and red begins to tint her cheeks once again.

"No. I just wanted to give them their privacy." Sarada finally manages to answer. "For the most part, Mitsuki kept his hands to himself on the mission, and I figured he couldn't make it much longer."

Inojin laughs and Sarada catches herself staring at the way he tilts his head back and the crinkles by his eyes when he smiles. She quickly looks away before he notices. She watches Sora running up ahead of them with Sumukha circling around his head.

"Yeah, they weren't exactly keeping it PG when I saw them at Ichiraku's. What else would you expect from Mitsuki, though. The guy's always been very open about his personal life."

Sarada snorts at that. She knows how true that is. She knows way more about her teammate than she ever needs to, including everything from what types of food make him gassy to what he looks like naked. Both of those are things that she wishes she could forget.

Once they reach the park, Sora takes off for the playground equipment while Sarada and Inojin sit in the swings and watch him. After carrying on a mostly one sided conversation for a few minutes, Inojin pulls out his sketchbook and begins to draw the scene before them. Sarada watches his steady hands masterfully trace the outlines before he moves on to the minute details. He was just recently promoted to Tokubetsu Jonin for both his proficiency in his clan's special abilities and his mastery of his father's unique jutsu. She watches as his jaw clenches and unclenches, and notices that his eyes flit from scene to paper every couple of seconds. Her throat goes dry as the image of him drawing her comes back to mind.

Sarada is caught between calling him out and pretending like she never knew, but both seem impossible, especially with Sora so nearby and so many potential onlookers. Plus, Sarada doesn't know what she'd say. She's angry, yes, but only because he didn't ask permission. The truth of the matter is, she's been very attracted to Inojin for quite some time now, and probably would have agreed to it if he had just asked, or told her, or something like that. But he didn't and she feels the strangest mix of violation and flattery, and she needs to get it all out by yelling at him and smashing her fists into him before she explodes, but now is not the time.

After half an hour at the park, Sarada figures the stew must be almost ready and calls to Sora that it's time to head back. He takes off running ahead with his hawk and Sarada and Inojin tail behind him. Instead of putting away his sketchbook, Inojin flips back through a week's worth of drawings. Sarada watches him out of the corner of her eye. "What are you looking for?" She inquires suspiciously.

"I drew a picture of you and I wanted to show you it. I have to say-"

Before he can finish his sentence, her fist connects with his jaw and he goes flying.

"Shannaro! You pervert! Do you have no shame?" She screeches. "You have the nerve to-" She steps on the sketchbook and glances down at the page it is flipped to. It's a picture of her and Sora feeding the ducks in the Uchiha lake. Perfectly innocent. Her face turns bright red and she storms off in the direction of her parents' home.

"Sarada! Wait! What are you talking about?" Sarada!" She doesn't look back and breaks out into a mad dash before she has to hear any more.

By the time Inojin makes it back to the house, the only seat open is to Sarada's left. She refuses to acknowledge his presence as he sinks into the seat clutching his jaw.

"Sweetie, what happened to your face?" Ino reaches across the table and examines his already bruising cheek.

"I fell off the swing." Inojin mutters, glancing at Sarada, who is staring intently at her glass of water. It's obvious no one at the table believes him, but nothing more is said on the matter. Ino heals his jaw and then the meal begins.

Sarada almost chokes on her stew when she feels Inojin create a telepathic connection with her. " _What did I do?"_

" _Get out of my head, jerk!"_ Sarada mentally shoves him out of her head and goes back to eating. She feels him try to make the connection again but keeps him shut out. When she feels him trying to read her mind she kicks him under the table. She's caught off guard when he uses that moment to establish a link once again. " _Just tell me what I did!_

" _I know about the other drawings you did of me! Pervert! I'll end you!"_

Sarada expects the telepathic link to be dropped and for the teen to make a mad dash for the hills, but instead she notices his smirk out of the corner of her eye and his knee bumps hers.

" _Oh, so that's where my favorite picture of you went. Can I have it back?"_

Sarada gasps and everyone turns to look at her. She turns bright red and gestures to the stew as an excuse. "Hot." She manages to splutter. Inojin chuckles and Sarada kicks his shin under the table.

" _I can't believe you! Do you have any idea how violated I feel?"_

" _Sorry, but I couldn't help myself. Besides, like you'd agree to it if I did , anyways."_

Sarada doesn't reply to that, not wanting him to know the truth. She cuts off the link again and finishes her meal quickly. She distractedly answers questions when they are directed to her, but as soon as the meal is over and she is free, she runs up to her room and slams the door shut. She throws herself on her childhood bed and groans aloud while pulling on her hair in frustration. After a few moments she senses Inojin's chakra signature ascending the stairs, but she does nothing to stop him from entering her room. He's quiet after he shuts the door, waiting for her to break the silence.

"Yes." Sarada says suddenly as she sits up.

Inojin's brow furrows. "Pardon?"

"Yes. I give you permission to draw your filthy pictures of me." Sarada's face is so serious when she makes this statement Inojin's cheeks turn a light pink.

Sarada crawls off her bed and slowly stalks toward the suddenly taken aback boy. Without thinking about it he backs up against the wall and she plants a hand on his chest while running her fingers through his blond ponytail with the other. "See? All you had to do was ask." She purrs, a sultry smirk on her lips.

Inojin gulps and Sarada watches the bob of his adam's apple. On impulse she leans forward and places feather light kisses on his neck. When she pulls back to meet his eyes so he can see her intentions, she finds him returning the look. "Well this is good timing. I was just needing some more inspiration. Now let's see how accurate my drawings are."


End file.
